The development of shoes has been a gradual process over the years. As more was learned about the foot and its needs for walking, standing, running, etc., various features were developed. For example, there was a time when there was no design distinction made between right and left shoes, they were simply made the same. Now, shoes are much more comfortable and contour the foot much more closely than they did centuries ago. We also now have shoes for various purposes: shoes to provide style and elegance; shoes to provide support; casual shoes; corrective shoes; hiking shoes; running shoes; and many more. Each of the various types of shoes have different features to correspond to the uses for the shoe which distinguish them one from another.
It has been said that a person's feet are the most abused part of their body. Thus, naturally, shoes play an important role in either causing the abuse or preventing unnecessary abuse. One time in which the potential for abuse is extremely high is when a person actively participates in a sport. During active sport participation, an athlete's feet and his shoes take a tremendous beating. Moreover, in many instances, the injuries an athlete suffers can be traced directly to improperly fitted shoes, a shoe failure or inadequacy, or use of the wrong type of shoe. Consequently, there is a great deal of interest in improvements to athletic shoes of all types. The shoe industry is continually striving to find improvements that will add proper support to the foot and reduce the likelihood for injury. In short, the proper pair of comfortable, well-fitted shoes has become the most critical part of an athlete's equipment.
In recent years, due to the increased awareness for physical fitness and participation sports, a considerable amount of research, development and testing has been devoted to improving all types of athletic shoes. In particular, running shoes have received considerable attention because jogging and road racing has become increasingly more popular. Accordingly, the running shoe industry has blossomed and great strides have been made in improving running shoes.
New light-weight materials have been used to reduce the overall weight of the shoe and to absorb moisture by drawing it away from the foot. Breathable materials have been used to provide ventilation to the foot thereby increasing comfort. Resilient materials for absorbing the shocks normally imparted to the foot, leg or body of the wearer have also been used. Shoe design has become more streamline because new flexible materials can be used to contour the foot closely. Special insole inserts and arch supports have been developed to provide added support for persons requiring such. Improvements have been made in the design and the cut of a shoe to add support where needed or to make the shoe fit more comfortably.
Numerous fastening means have also been developed to improve the way in which the shoe is secured to the foot. The development of fastening assemblies which utilize a hook and pile or Velcro-type fastening material (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,282,657 entitled "Heel Restraint With an Adjustable and Flexible Closure Assembly for Shoes," issued to Anthony Antonious Aug. 11, 1981 which illustrates a number of fastening assemblies for securing the shoe to the foot) are of particular interest to the athletic shoe industry because such fastening assemblies are flexible, light-weight, and adjustable.
Further, the use of laces in shoes has always had certain drawbacks. Laces are not resilient and they sometimes stretch during use which permits the foot to move. Laces break or become untied and can present a hazard to the wearer when such occurs. The tongue of the shoe is frequently wrinkled or displaced as the shoe laces are tightened so that distracting or even painful discomfort may result during use. Also, because a shoe never fits exactly the same way twice, a shoe laced comfortably one way at one time may cause discomfort or injury on another occasion.
Various types of shoes have been developed to eliminate the use of laces; but with respect to active sport shoes, the developments have not proved entirely satisfactory. Typically, in order to eliminate the use of laces, support or the effectiveness of securing the shoe to the foot is sacrificed. The shoe of the present invention provides improved support with an adjustable fastening mechanism to secure the shoe to the foot without the use of laces. The athletic shoe and fastening mechanism of this invention is also designed to provide adjustable support to the foot and to reduce injuries related to use of an improperly fitted shoe.
An object of this invention is to provide an adjustable strap fastening mechanism for a shoe without shoe laces, shoe lace eyelets or a tongue; said shoe having a resilient "v" cut section or gore which expands to facilitate putting on or taking off the shoe.
Another object of this invention is to provide a shoe having an adjustable strap fastener mostly encased within the shoe in a wrap-around fashion which provides support to the foot when pulled comfortably taut.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a shoe having an adjustable strap fastener which will comfortably secure the shoe to the foot without the discomfort and disadvantages of tongue and lace fastening mechanisms.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a shoe which eliminates the annoyance, interruption, and danger of untied and dragging shoe laces.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a shoe which provides adjustable support to the arch of the foot via an adjustable strap fastener which encircles the arch and the instep of the foot in comfortable securing engagement.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a shoe which can be adjusted for support and secured to the foot with a single pulling motion.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a shoe with an adjustable strap fastening mechanism which is economical, light-weight, durable in use and easy to construct.
These and other objects and features of the present invention will become more fully apparent from the following description and appended claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.